An introduction to

blogging
 What is blogging?

 It’s more than people putting up pictures of what

they’re eating!
A blog (a contraction of the words web log) is a discussion or
informational site published online and consisting of discrete entries
("posts") typically displayed in reverse chronological order.
Wikipedia

 The emergence and growth of blogs in the late

1990s coincided with the advent of web publishing
tools that facilitated the posting of content by non-
technical users.
 What’s in a blog?

 Most blogs are primarily textual, although some

focus on art (art blogs), photographs (photoblogs),
videos (video blogs or "vlogs"), music (MP3 blogs),
and audio (podcasts).
 Microblogging is another type of blogging, featuring
very short posts (i.e. Twitter / Facebook).
 The Blogosphere

Blogs are sometimes overlooked as a significant source of online buzz in

comparison to social networking sites, yet consumer interest in blogs keeps
growing. By the end of 2011, Nielsen tracked over 181 million blogs around the
world, up from 36 million only five years earlier in 2006.
Nielsen, 2012
 Who’s blogging?

 65% of bloggers are 18-44 years old. 30% are 25-34.

 1/3 2/3

 Bloggers are well-educated: 7 out of 10 bloggers have

gone to college, a majority of whom are graduates

 Bloggers are active across social media: they're twice as

likely to post/comment on consumer-generated video sites
like YouTube, and nearly three times more likely to post in
Message Boards/Forums within the last month

 70% of bloggers have been active more than 2 years. 20%

of all bloggers have been active more than 6 years.
Who’s blogging?
>60%
 The tools of the trade
Name Pros
• Free & Open source
• Massive user &
developer base
• Plug-ins and themes
• Hosted centrally or self-
install
• Free
• One of the earliest
blogging platform
• Ease of start-up
• Excellent Google
integration (AdSense)
• Free
• Ease of use (post online,
SMS, audio)
• Multiple blog support
• Mobile-friendly
Cons Target users
• Complexity • Professional bloggers
• Most flexibility
requires self-install
• No back-end code • Casual bloggers
access
• Limited
customizations
(themes and plugins)
• Difficult to set up
own domain
• Visual-centric, • Casual bloggers who
doesn’t encourage want something
text-heavy blogging between Twitter and
• Emphasis on sharing WP
devalues original • Photobloggers
 The tools of the trade

Name Pros Cons Target users

• Oldest premium • Expensive, especially • Casual bloggers who
blogging platform with free, powerful want something easier
• Very good analytics & alternatives and more robust than
publishing tools • Lack of features and WP/Blogger
• Promotes blogs within flexibility
internal blogosphere • Dated
• Highly customizable • Expensive • Creative professionals
(drag-n-drop) • No back-end code and businesses that
• Dedicated mobile apps access want a cloud-based, no-
• Easy to import blogs • Limited nonsense blogging
created on other customizations solution with extensive
platforms (themes and plugins) customization options
• Built-in ecommerce
solution

There are also tons of others, but either in limited market share or limited availability
(beta).
Who’s saying what?
 Who’s saying what?

1. The Huffington Post 17. The Next Web

2. The Verge 18. Deadline.com
3. BuzzFeed 19. GigaOM
4. Mashable! 20. Bleacher Report
5. Business Insider 21. Bits
6. Gawker 22. VentureBeat
7. Breaking news and opinions on … 23. Infowars
8. Gizmodo 24. ZeroHedge
9. TechCrunch 25. Laughing Squid
10. Deadspin 26. SB Nation
11. Think Progress 27. Daily Kos
12. TMZ.com | Celebrity Gossip 28. The Opinionator
13. Mediaite 29. Jalopnik
14. CNN Political Ticker 30. RedState
15. Jezebel 31. Lifehacker
16. Hot Air Technocrati, 2013
How are they saying it?